About Sue
Sue has sung all her life in various church, school and community choirs and has a passion for harmony and unaccompanied singing. She arranges much of the music for her choirs to suit the abilities and strengths of her singers.
She enjoys a wide range of music genres and has been mentored, inspired and encouraged by a number of community singing leaders including Fay White, Jane Thompson and Jane Coker (Community Music Victoira), gospel guru Tony Backhouse, Melanie Shanahan (Arramaieda & Akasa) Rachel Hore OAM, Stephen Taberner (Spooky Mens Chorale) Valanga and Andrea Khoza (Sth African music) Morris Stuart (Central Australian Aboriginal Women's Choir) and Therese Virtue and Roger King (The Boite). Early musical influences include Cat Stevens, James Taylor, Christy Moore, Mary Black, The Eurythmics, Talking Heads and Paul Simon, and more recently many of the great Swing performers and all the wonderful a cappella choirs such as Sweet Honey in the Rock, Soweto Gospel Choir, Sweet Monas, Living Out Loud – the list goes on and on. |
Choir Director, Teacher, Workshop Artist
For 12 years Sue taught music appreciation in primary schools, and then moved into education support.
Sue began her career in community music in 1996, running monthly singing workshops in a variety of genres including African, World Music and Gospel. At the insistence of regular workshop attendees, she formed her first choir – Simply Irresistible – in 1999 and went on to direct 4 more on the Mornington Peninsula.
Currently, Sue is director of two acapella community choirs - Simply Irrresistible in Frankston and Making Waves (formed in 2002) in Mornington. The two choirs often come together as Two Bays Choir – an occasional combined choir of up to 50 singers - to perform at events such as the Mornington Peninsula Choral Festival, and at Christmas-time.
Sue also indulges her passion for African-style drumming with her Friday morning percussion group WAQ - a casual group of up to 12 people that meets in Frankston to have some fun and make a bit of noise, and is available to run Singing and Percussion Workshops at festivals, schools and professional development and well-being days. Past clients include: Mornington and Frankston Shire Councils, Peninsula Health, Community Music Victoria, Flinders College and Brotherhood of St Laurence.
Sue began her career in community music in 1996, running monthly singing workshops in a variety of genres including African, World Music and Gospel. At the insistence of regular workshop attendees, she formed her first choir – Simply Irresistible – in 1999 and went on to direct 4 more on the Mornington Peninsula.
Currently, Sue is director of two acapella community choirs - Simply Irrresistible in Frankston and Making Waves (formed in 2002) in Mornington. The two choirs often come together as Two Bays Choir – an occasional combined choir of up to 50 singers - to perform at events such as the Mornington Peninsula Choral Festival, and at Christmas-time.
Sue also indulges her passion for African-style drumming with her Friday morning percussion group WAQ - a casual group of up to 12 people that meets in Frankston to have some fun and make a bit of noise, and is available to run Singing and Percussion Workshops at festivals, schools and professional development and well-being days. Past clients include: Mornington and Frankston Shire Councils, Peninsula Health, Community Music Victoria, Flinders College and Brotherhood of St Laurence.